Yes, That is an Avocado in My Purse: Day One

This blog series is going to document my month-long ketogenic diet and all of its ups and downs. It is both a personal experiment to assess how the ketogenic diet will affect sports performance and weight loss as well as a collaborative effort with my colleague, Dr. Firlande Volcy, as part of a health workshop that focuses on the ketogenic diet.

A little about the ketogenic diet: it is a popular modern diet that consists of 70-75% fat, 20-25% protein, and 5% carbohydrates. For many people, this diet helps with weight loss, increasing energy, and improving symptoms of diabetes by forcing the body to burn fats as a fuel source rather than carbohydrates. The goal is to decrease the body’s dependence on insulin, facilitate weight loss, and improve cognitive function.

For those who want to know what it’s like to live on the keto diet, look no further.

In preparation, I spent $78 dollars on various groceries to start the diet, including avocados, coconut shreds, heavy whipping cream, fresh berries, and organic stevia. I have decided to go the non-meal planning route for this week. It may come down to meal planning in the future but for now, I am relying on my own nutrition knowledge on consuming the correct foods throughout the day. I will be documenting my morning weight and moods throughout the day as well. Here's the breakdown:

Weight: 146.6lbs / Mood: excited to start keto

Breakfast: 12oz coffee with stevia and heavy cream. - Mood: normal

Was not hungry for breakfast since I gorged myself on non-keto foods the night before.

Friend and I decided to go to Brewsters for a post-gym meal/lunch. I verified the soup was made with heavy cream instead of milk or half and half. The salad was Mesclun mix with shredded cheese, bacon, hard-boiled egg, toasted almonds, green onions, and tomato.

Exercise: Went to the gym with a friend for an hour around 1pm. Did a relatively light full body workout, including squats, hip ab/abductor exercises, hamstring kickbacks, 2 abdominal exercises, Arnold curls, and assisted pull-ups.

Cicely Shankle is a Resident Nutritionist at the Alaska Center for Natural Medicine. To learn more about Cicely, click here. To schedule an appointment, call 907.452.3600.